In this section:

• Introduction aux adverbes
• Expressions avec avoir
• Verbes (ER)

Introduction aux adverbes

An adverb is a word that qualifies the action of the verb, that is, it specifies how or when the action is performed. In English, many adverbs are indicated by the -ly ending. In French, most adverbs end in -ment.

Adverbs answer questions about the action: how? how much? when? and where? While most adverbs in French and English modify verbs, they can also modify other adverbs as well as adjectives.

Adverb vs. Adjective
It is common in non-standard English for speakers to use adjectives in place of adverbs.

While this alternation is common in English, it is not common in French where adjectives are rarely used in place of the adverb. Remember that adverbs modify verbs (as well as other adverbs and adjectives) and adjectives modify nouns.

	Sam écrit bien.		Sam writes well.
	La poésie de Sam est bonne.		Sam’s poetry is good.

Expressions avec avoir

The verb avoir is irregular in the present tense. Listen carefully to the pronunciation of the -s in the plural pronouns nous, vous, and ils/elles/iels. This -s is pronounced as a /z/ to link with the vowel sound in the plural forms of avoir. This liaison, or linking, is especially important in distinguishing ils ont (they have) from the third person plural of être ils sont (they are).

Avoir is also used as an auxiliary in compound tenses (passé composé with avoir, plus-que-parfait, futur antérieur, etc.) Besides ownership, the verb avoir expresses age in French, unlike the English equivalent, which uses the verb ‘to be.’

Verbes (ER)

There are three major groups of regular verbs in French: verbs with infinitives ending in –er, verbs with infinitives ending in –ir, and verbs with infinitives ending in –re. Since –er verbs are the most numerous, they are considered the first conjugation. To conjugate these verbs, drop the –er from the infinitive to form the stem. Next, add the –er endings to the stem. Different tenses have different endings.

The endings given below (-e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent) are for forming the present tense. The endings (–e, –es, –e, and –ent) are all silent. The only endings that are pronounced are the nous (–ons) and the vous (–ez) endings. The four silent endings form a boot shape in the verb conjugation.

Listen carefully to the following sentences. Note that the pronunciation of each of the verbs is the same even though the conjugations are spelled differently.

Here is a list of common –er verbs:

Je changes to j’ before a verb starting with a vowel or a silent h (ex.j’adore, j’habite). This phenomenon is known as élision. Listen to the following sentences. Can you hear the élision in the first two examples?

Note also that the s in plural pronouns (nous, vous, and ils/elles/iels) is usually silent except when it is followed by a verb that begins with a vowel sound. In such a case the silent s is pronounced as a /z/ and links the pronoun to the verb. This phenomenon is called liaison (‘linking’) and is very characteristic of French. Listen carefully to the sentences below. Which sentences contain examples of liaison?